Record Sending Outreach Activities and Get Students Started

Once you have planned a school presentation or other activity where you actively encourage individuals to start their study abroad journey, please record this activity as a campaign in Global Link so that we can best track our collective efforts in encouraging people to study abroad. You can use this form in Global Link (it will ask you to log in if you aren't already) to provide the campaign/event details. Thank you! If you have any questions or run into any snags, please contact your TDS for assistance, or refer to the detailed instructions for creating campaigns in Global Link.

When giving a school presentation or holding a tabling event, common practice in the past had been to pass out “lead cards” for interested students to fill out. However, the process for a student going from writing down their name on a card to actually getting started on their application was long and arduous. So, we’ve made it easier.

2) Text in to receive a link to thee application and get started on their phone.

“Text opt-in”cards are available to order from our fulfillment site and can be passed out at presentations and events. They will include everything the student needs to get started, along with a fun culture quiz to help them get hooked and stay engaged. If the student would prefer not to send a text, they will still have what they need to go online and start an application there.

So wait, why are we doing this?!

Texting is quicker: For short, easy conversations, high schoolers now use texting as their primary mode of communication – far more than phone calls or even emails. (See the data.) By fitting our processes into theirs, we remove barriers for students to engage with AFS.

It’s free to start an application: Previously, AFS charged $75 to start an application, so we needed some way for students to indicate interest without paying. Now, it doesn’t cost anything to get started. Giving students a link to the application – instead of having them fill out a lead card and wait for follow-up – is the quickest and easiest way for them to “start their journey.”